Boys' name · since 1920

Hess

10 babies named Hess in U.S. Social Security records since 1920, with the highest year being 1920. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

#34,861 of 45,481
all-time among boys
10
born since 1920
1920s
peak decade

Hess is not among the current top-ranked boys names; 10 have been recorded since 1920.

Social Security Administration records show Hess recorded 10 times among boys since 1920, though it doesn't currently rank among the most-used boys names, peaking in the 1920s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1920 to 1922.

  • #34,861 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • 10 born since 1920
  • 1920s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Hess ranks #34,861 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first). 10 born since 1920, peaking in the 1920s.

#34,861 of 45,481
all-time among boys
10
born since 1920
1920s
peak decade
Rare archive record
All-time archive position

Hess's 10 recorded births place it above 21.08% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

National only
State-record footprint

No state rows cleared SSA’s public reporting threshold for this name.

Hess's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Splitting Hess's full recorded timeline at 1922, 50% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 50% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 1920, with just 5 recorded births.

Hess popularity over time

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1920–1922

Last recorded 1922
Peak year (1920)
5
Annual births at peak, across 3 years of records
5 19201922 5

Hess by decade

1920s is the heaviest window (10 births, 100% of the file).

1920s was Hess's strongest decade.

10 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 100% of all-time use.

Hess births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 1920s at 10 births (100% of all-time use).

Source U.S. Social Security Administration · Baby Names As of August 2026

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Hess?
Hess has been given to 10 babies in the U.S. since 1920, according to SSA data. Its archive ordinal is #34,861 of 45,481 among boys' names (total births, highest first). Its last appearance in the data was 1922. 5 babies were born in 1920, its single highest year.
Where does Hess sit in the SSA name archive?
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Hess ranks #34,861 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first). All-time ordinal matches browse popularity (total births DESC); the current ordinal uses the null SSA file. See /methodology#corpus-placement.
When was Hess most popular?
Hess was most popular in the 1920s decade with 10 total births. The single peak year was 1920.
How long has the name Hess been used?
Hess has been recorded in Social Security data since 1920, spanning 3 years of data through 1922.
What names are similar to Hess?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Heston, Hester, Hesham, Hesston, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

Keep exploring Hess

Nearby Names Like Hess

Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Hess

Names with a similar number of total births

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Hess: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.

Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.

Data Sources

Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1920–1922 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).

Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Hess draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.